The important issue of sharing interim cardiovascular clinical trial data is explored in the article, “When Should Data and Safety Monitoring Committees Share Interim Results in Cardiovascular Trials?” in the April 9th issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). The article is authored by Jeffrey S. Borer, MD (Weill Cornell Medical College), David J. Gordon, MD, Ph.D. and Nancy L. Geller, Ph.D. (both of National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health).

At the 57th Annual Scientific Session of the American College of Cardiology (ACC), Dr. Jeffrey S. Borer is presenting the findings of a 28-year study that show that a non-invasively measured contractility descriptor previously used to predict clinical outcomes in patients with aortic regurgitation (AR — leaking aortic valve) without surgery is also a superior measure for determining survival after AR is relieved by aortic valve replacement (AVR).

Current regulatory policies should be strengthened to ensure acceptable cardiovascular safety of drugs developed primarily for non-cardiovascular medical problems, according to a recent presentation made by Dr. Jeffrey Borer, an authority in cardiovascular medicine and surgery at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center in New York City.

His recommendations include earlier testing of all drugs' cardiovascular effects and giving regulatory bodies the authority to mandate continuing evaluation of drug effects, even after approval for marketing.

A study from the Howard Gilman Institute of Valvular Heart Disease of Weill Cornell Medical College, headed by Dr. Jeffrey S. Borer, shows that exercise tolerance — determined by conventional exercise testing on a treadmill — is a good measure of likely progression to heart failure in patients with leaking mitral heart valves — mitral regurgitation (MR). The study was published in the October 15th issue of the American Journal of Cardiology.